The University Library of Groningen

To celebrate the four hundredth anniversary of the University Library of Groningen in 2015, designer Nynke Tiekstra (ColtsfootMedia, Rotterdam) was commisioned to design the book The University Library of Groningen. Four hundred years of history in four buildings, forty collections and infinite pictures. The brief suggested that the book should reflect the evolution of the library “from a single room with chained books to a modern and busy centre which is an information hub and a social meeting place as well.”

For this project Tiekstra needed a typeface that “could link this 400 years in library history. Gerard Unger’s typeface Alverata did that job excellent”. Additionally, “the playfulness charmed the author of the book instantly, when she noticed the irregularities of the type in the first proof-design”. The result is that “Alverata genuinely supports the book’s presentation of the many delightful, fascinating and rare items in the library’s care. And thanks to the typeface, the book has become a balanced and contemporary impression of the treasures preserved by the library”